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Native Americans on Pro-Gun Billboards Create Controversy

On April 29, two billboards in Greeley, Colorado featuring American Indians created quite a stir with their message.

The billboards feature an image of what appears to be three American Indians in traditional attire with the words “Turn in your arms. The government will take care of you.”

The Associated Press reports that the billboards were paid for by a group of local residents according to Matt Wells, an account executive with Lamar Advertising in Denver, the company that owns the billboards. Wells also stated the billboards are only appearing in the Greeley area.

"I think it is insensitive, because even though it is what may have happened in the past, people are still living that. Relatives are still living that," Kerri Salazar, a Greeley resident and Native American, told KUSA, a CNN affiliate.

For American Indian, Irene Vernon, a Colorado State University professor and chairwoman of the ethnic studies department, it is a narrow view of a much more complicated history of the Native American plight she told AP. She said it's not as if Native Americans just gave up their guns and wound up on reservations.

The billboards have supporters as well. One of which is Dudley Brown, executive director of Rocky Mountain Gun Owners, who was quoted by CNN as saying, “Where can we send a check to support more?”

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No, they were lied to, deceived, manipulated, forced off their lands, enslaved, killed, poisoned, imprisoned, hanged, treated like cattle, and mocked in countless cases and on numerous occasions! Even the tribes that tried to cooperate and negotiate, many times were still taken advantage of.

Remember, when smallpox infected blankets are outlawed, only outlaws will use smallpox infected blankets.
People are afraid that if it weren't for their 2nd Amendment rights someone could come along and name a sports team a derogitory racial slur based on their ethnicity. I wonder where they got that idea?
Nothing makes me angrier than a bunch of illiterate, gun-toting rednecks claiming their country has been taken from them!

This is disgusting. Don't care where you are about the issue of guns. They're using our history, our struggles against genocide, colonization and the rape and pillage of our peoples and lands to make a political point and it is incredibly offensive. Background checks ARE NOT the same thing as GENOCIDE. It's pretty damn insulting to the survivors of actual genocide to suggest otherwise. Not to mention, not really accurate, you know, HISTORY-wise. Ew.

At first glance this is truly Accurate. Upon deeper thought it is painful as the Gov. has never openly apologized for all the Atrocities against the !st Nations People. They have not honored treaties made with the !st Nations People.Sometimes it has to hurt before it can begin to heal.Americans need to wake up as the Arm of the Gov. is not to short that it cannot reach out and take away what is theirs.

This is just another example of mockery. Lets use the Indians as examples of why we should not let the government do to us what they did to them(the Native Americans). Even if many of the people of Colorado, just a hundered years ago welcomed the disarming and widespread killing of Native Americans. Natives that are supporting this billboard are just allowing themselves to become another "American" mascot.

Why don't they post a picture of the Columbine shootings? or the Aurora shootings? or anything else besides anything featuring Natives? Insensitive is putting it mildly. and if Dudly Brown has so much money to spend, why doesn't he send it to victims of shootings? ---hole.

I am an American Indian and yes it is easy to take offense to such a thing, when we live daily in the Governments abuse of our people across this country. However I personally look at this in a positive manner, it reminds main stream society of the onging injustice being done to our people.

I am an American Indian and yes it is easy to take offense to such a thing, when we live daily in the Governments abuse of our people across this country. However I personally look at this in a positive manner, it reminds main stream society of the onging injustice being done to our people.